Forest and Rangeland Birds of the United States

Natural History and Habitat Use

Wild Turkey -- Meleagris gallopavo
(formerly Turkey)

RANGE: Resident locally from central Arizona and central Colorado to northern
Iowa, central Michigan, southern New Hampshire, and southwestern Maine south to
southern Texas, the Gulf Coast, and Florida. Has been reintroduced into much of
its former range, and successfully introduced locally in nearly all states outside
the historic range.

STATUS: Locally fairly common.

HABITAT: Inhabits a wide range of forest types from the wooded swamps
of the eastern and southeastern states to the sparsely wooded flatlands and
river bottoms of the southern Great Plains and coniferous forests of the western
mountains. In the East, prefers open, mature hardwood forests containing mast-bearing
trees such as oaks; in the Southwest, prefers more arid, grass-dominated habitats
having open- topped roosting trees, water, and succulent vegetation. In the
West, most often associates with ponderosa or montane forests, scrub oaks, and
junipers at altitudes of 6,000 to 12,000 feet.

SPECIAL HABITAT REQUIREMENTS: Mast-producing woodlands with forest
openings or clearings, large dense conifers or hardwoods for roosting, and water.

NEST: Nests in a slight depression on dry ground, usually in dead leaves
at the base of a tree, beneath a bush, or under a log. Generally nests close
to strutting grounds and near water. In western mountains, it usually nests
on north-facing slopes from 7,000 to 9,500 feet in elevation.

FOOD: Diet is 90 percent plant foods, including mast of oaks, beeches,
and pines; fruits; seeds and grains; and greens of grasses and forbs. Also eats
roots, tubers, and insects, especially grasshoppers and walking sticks.